Brand Identity: Build and maintain your company’s most important asset — your relationship with customers
By David E. Tashji
Today more than ever before, it is essential to establish a powerful brand to enable a successful and profitable business, and position your company as a
differentiated thought leader. Effective branding creates committed relationships with your customers, partners and suppliers by establishing your company’s unique selling proposition.

In this first of a three part series, we will explore the value and process of creating a strong brand image and marketplace reputation, and how a comprehensive brand strategy can take your companies greatest strengths and position them with a unified and integrated image and message.

What is a brand?
It is important to consider your company’s brand as a critical asset to your business. Your brand is more than a graphical mark. It is an investment that you make in your customer relationships. Brand equity (see Figure 1) is your return on that investment. Your brand is also a promise to your customers, employees and partners, and establishes all-important mind share to drive the four chronological stages of building successful customer relationships; awareness, consideration, preference and loyalty.

The role of your brand
The primary role of your brand is to establish and enhance customer relationships to create attention, loyalty and drive business results. Building a unique brand identity is the key to acquiring and retaining this attention and loyalty. Successful branding sets your firm apart from the competition, and therefore, makes your company’s products and services more desirable and valuable to your target prospects and customers.

A strong brand can also suggest that a company is united in its capabilities and integrated in its approach, always offering customers a positive experience. Over time, your brand image and brand reputation will lead to committed relationships with your customers. This is because a consistent image builds familiarity. Familiarity strengthens relationships, and relationships build revenue. Ultimately, branding builds your marketplace reputation and drives improved financial performance to the bottom line.

Understanding brand equity
Brand equity is the value built-up in your brand. It is measured based on how much a prospect or customer is aware of or loyal to your brand. The value of a company’s brand equity can be calculated by comparing the expected future revenue from the branded company, product or service with the expected future revenue from an equivalent lesser or non-branded company, product or service. This value can comprise both tangible, functional attributes (such as having twice the production speed or half the waste) and intangible, emotional attributes (such as the brand for people seeking simplicity and convenience).

The anatomy of a successful brand
A logo, tagline, business cards and Web site is not a brand design! A brand is actually comprised of five primary attributes that, viewed in totality, establish a valuable and unique view of your company with prospects and customers.

The brand position. The brand position is the part of your brand identity and unique selling proposition that is to be proactively communicated to prospects and customers and that demonstrates your company’s advantage over the competition and their brand. It illustrates what your organization does and whom it serves. It also creates awareness of the aspects of your organization that lend credibility to your unique selling proposition.

The brand promise. The brand promise is the most important feature that your company promises to deliver to prospects and customers. To devise your brand promise, consider what your customers, employees, and partners should expect from each and every interaction with your company.

Your brand promise prescribes how you want them to feel about your organization after each and every “customer experience” with your company.

Brand traits. Brand traits illustrate what your company wants its brand to be known for. You should think about the specific personality traits that you want prospects, clients, employees, and partners to internalize and use to describe your organization. Effective brand traits are critical for creating a high quality brand reputation in the marketplace.

Today, successful organizations understand how to use their brand traits to market with their customers rather that at their customers.

The brand story. The brand story illustrates your company’s history, along with why your record adds value and credibility to your brand position, promise and traits. Included should be a summary of your company’s products and services.

Brand association. Brand association is the facet that most people think of when they consider the meaning of branding. These associations would include products, a company spokesperson, a symbol, logo, slogan, visual treatment and finally … an organizational personality.

Through associations your brand communicates who it is, what it does and how it does it. Your brand association should reflect your brand promise, all of your brand traits, and provide support for your brand positioning statement.

Building a brand strategy
Your brand strategy establishes the model for building and maintaining the most important asset any company has — its relationship with customers. The key to building a strong brand plan is consistency: throughout your products, services and communications over time. Brand stewardship requires consistent use of the brand to support and develop this invaluable property — your brand identity.

Your brand plan defines your brand building activity, and is comprised of seven essential activities.

1. Sizing and segmenting your unique market.
2. Performing differentiation analysis.
3. Developing your unique selling proposition.
4. Developing a message map architecture.
5. Ensuring accountability with STAM’s (strategy, tactics, actions and measures)
6. Developing and deploying the appropriate promotions mix investments.
7. Tracking and modifying promotions investment performance.

These seven essential activities for developing your brand strategy will be illustrated in part two of this three-part series appearing in New England Printer & Publisher.

Achieving brand loyalty
Branding establishes the model for building and maintaining the most important asset any company has — its relationship with customers. A successful brand strategy will greatly influence your prospect and customers awareness, perception and attitude toward your company, ultimately delivering brand loyalty, the measure of customer commitment to your company and its brand identity.

About the author: David E. Tashji is managing director of Tashji & Associates, an advisory practice committed to helping business leaders capitalize upon revenue and profitability growth opportunities. Prior to establishing the advisory practice, Tashji was general manager new business development, worldwide marketing in the Xerox Graphic Communications Group. He was responsible for identifying, developing and marketing advanced digital imaging solutions to communications services providers worldwide. His experience includes work in international marketing, business development, product development, product management, global account sales and sales management having held senior positions in numerous market leading organizations. He can be reached at 978-392-9004 or by e-mail at .